MAA Math Alert - Novermber 2012

News and Views

The AMC 8, the MAA's math contest for middle school students grades 8 and below, took place on Tuesday, November 13. About2,100 schools registered for the AMC 8 this year, ordering around 150,000 contest booklets. California had the largest number of registered schools at 265! AMC 8 results and statistics will be available on the AMC webpage before December 1. The comprehensive results and statistics will be in a new, faster, and easier-to-use format.

Participate in the AMC 10/12

The 2013 AMC 10/12 A Contest will take place on Tuesday, February 5. The AMC 10/12 B Contest will take place on Wednesday, February 20. Click here to register for either contest online. Please encourage your department, college, or university to participate by offering the contests to interested and high-achieving students.

If you teach mathematics at the middle or secondary school level, be sure to check out Curriculum Inspirations, a new resource under development by the MAA (this is a sneak preview!). These curriculum essays provide practical examples of how you can use MAA AMC content to teach problem solving in the classroom and address the Common Core State Standards! You can also find competition practice resources here.

It's not too late to propose a session for the Joint MathematicsMeetings in Baltimore, but be aware that the deadlines are coming up very soon. Submissions for Contributed Paper Sessions are due December 28, 2012. Submissions for Minicourses are due December 25, 2012. Submissions for Panels, Workshops, and Poster Sessions are due April 9, 2013. All MAA members are encouraged to consider submitting proposals for sessions. Guidelines and instructions may be found here.

Meet MAA Editors at JMM

Editors of MAA journals and magazines will be present at the MAA Pavilion at the Joint Mathematics Meetings starting at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, January 11, 2013. Bring your questions, suggestions, and ideas, and get immediate feedback.

Experience Alaska's inside passage with the MAA on a small ship with Alaskan Dream Cruises.

Get up close to thundering tidewater glaciers and see stunning wilderness through the eyes of expert naturalists, expedition leaders, and First Nations interpreters. Cruise from Sitka, Alaska, on the Baranof Dream with fewer than 60 passengers to legendary Glacier Bay National Park, stop at Juneau, see Mendenhall Glacier, and visit out-of-the-way exclusive places such as Hobart Bay. Participate in special onboard evening programs designed for MAA travelers concerning the challenges of educating a population spread across the largest state in the Union and teaching about native Alaskan mathematics. Reserve now for best price and cabin choice. Learn more here.

Travel Grant Program for the 2013 Mathematical Congress of the Americas (MCA 2013)

Funding for U.S.-based mathematicians attending MCA 2013 in Guanajuato, Mexico, August 5-9, 2013, is now available. Application deadline is December 31, 2012. Award decisions are expected to be announced by April 1, 2013. Details.

Featured Articles

What Do We Know at 7 p.m. on Election Night? Read About Nate Silver and Andrew Gelman's Election Forecast Model
A timely article originally published in the October 2010 issue of Mathematics Magazine. Article.

Mathematics and Politics Intersect in Karen Saxe's MAA Distinguished Lecture
Read a recap and listen to the full lecture on the mathematicsunderlying congressional reapportionment and redistricting. Article.

Jesus De Loera Highlights Open Problems in MAA Distinguished Lecture
Read a recap and listen to the full lecture on intriguing unsolved problems in polyhedral geometry. Article.

Michael Dorff Treats Audience to Good, Clean Fun at MAA Lecture
Read a recap and listen to the full lecture on soap bubbles and minimal surfaces. Article.

Launchings David Bressoud analyzes the information about the instructors of mainstream Calculus I from the MAA's Calculus Study in hisNovember column. Article.
Card Colm Just in time for election season, Colm Mulcahy presents a ternary trickle-down principle. Article.